Sophia is adorable, determined, and thriving.

Sophia is an adorable five-year-old from Evansville. She can be funny, opinionated, and even a bit stubborn! Thanks to her determination and life-changing Easterseals services, Sophia keeps reaching challenging goals!

You might remember an earlier chapter of Sophia’s story. She was born with Pallister-Killian Syndrome – PKS – a rare chromosomal disorder that causes developmental delays. Because of the community's support, the Easterseals Rehabilitation Center empowered Sophia to achieve milestones like crawling, smiling, and reaching. That was just the beginning!

Recently Sophia achieved another huge goal. After years of hard work in Easterseals therapy, she started sitting up independently, with absolutely no assistance! She has also become much stronger! She even pulls her activity table in front of her without help to access her favorite toys and projects. The inclusive Easterseals Early Learning Center helped Sophia learn skills she would need for school, and now she’s thriving in kindergarten! She participates equally alongside her classmates, uses switches and buttons to operate educational toys and answer questions, and enjoys making her own choices and sharing her opinions.

“One thing I would like people to know about Easterseals is the support and knowledge they bring to the family,” said Sophia’s mom Kandace. “Sophia would not be where she is now if it weren’t for her therapists educating us on how to work those therapies into her daily activities. They don’t just tell us what to do, they teach us how to do it and why it’s important.”

Sophia’s dad Gilbert added, “I’m just very appreciative of how much the Easterseals therapists care. They go out of their way to give Sophia what she needs.”